Peace Entrenched

Planning for a Palestinian State Should Not Await a Final Settlement

Growth Corridors: Accommodating Millions More

Each new rail station should be set at a considerable distance, anywhere from 2 to 15 miles, from historic urban cores. Remote stations would encourage compact, regulated forms of expansion designed to meet the needs of long-term growth, stretching from historic urban cores along new boulevards equipped with public transit, either bus or light rail lines (see Figure 16).

New neighborhoods along the boulevards could accommodate as many as 3 million people in the next 15 years. The linear neighborhoods would encourage transit use and discourage dependence on the automobile.

The linear neighborhoods would encourage transit use and discourage dependence on the automobile.

Construction of the main section, or “trunk,” of the Arc railway would cost about $3.3 billion, including railcars. Total costs of the rail and road infrastructure, along with stations and branch roads, was estimated to be about $6 billion (see Figure 17).

The Arc offers the promise of a system of national open space that could merge two existing environmental systems: the extensive landscape of agricultural fields, terraces, groves, and the farms and villages associated with them; and the collection of protected forests and nature reserves already designated throughout the West Bank. It ought to be possible to take a brief walk or bike ride along the linear park within any single metropolitan area or, more ambitiously, to undertake a hike or ride along the full extent of the Arc.

The RAND Corporation acknowledges its partner, Santa Monica-based Suisman Urban Design, for leadership in the development of the Arc concept and design. The combined tactics of urban density, public transit, and protected open space should be capable of supporting a sustainable, livable environment for generations (see Figure 18).

Related Reading

The Arc: A Formal Structure for a Palestinian State, Doug Suisman, Steven N. Simon, Glenn E. Robinson, C. Ross Anthony, Michael Schoenbaum, RAND/MG-327-GG, 2005a, 106 pp., ISBN 0-8330-3770-6.

Full Document

The Arc: A Formal Structure for a Palestinian State, RAND/RB-9119-GG, 2005b.

Full Document

Building a Successful Palestinian State, The RAND Palestinian State Study Team, led by Steven N. Simon, C. Ross Anthony, Glenn E. Robinson, David C. Gompert, Jerrold D. Green, Robert E. Hunter, C. Richard Neu, Kenneth I. Shine, RAND/MG-146-DCR, 2005a, 452 pp., ISBN 0-8330-3532-0.

Full Document

Building a Successful Palestinian State, RAND/RB-9072-DCR, 2005b.

Full Document

Helping a Palestinian State Succeed: Key Findings, The RAND Palestinian State Study Team, RAND/MG-146/1-RC, 2005, 84 pp., ISBN 0-8330-3771-4, includes the Arabic translation.

Full Document

Strengthening the Palestinian Health System, Michael Schoenbaum, Adel K. Afifi, Richard J. Deckelbaum, RAND/MG-311-1-DCR, 2005, 118 pp., ISBN 0-8330-3730-7.

Full Document